First passage time distribution of a modified fractional diffusion equation in the semi-infinite interval

Abstract

We investigate the first passage time (FPT) distribution for accelerating subdiffusion governed by the modified fractional diffusion equation which has a secondary fractional time derivative acting on a diffusion operator. For the FPT problem subject to absorbing barrier condition, we obtain exact analytical expressions for the FPT distribution as well as its Laplace transform in the semi-infinite interval. Most of the results have been derived by using the Laplace transform, the Fourier Cosine transform, the Mellin transform and the properties of the Fox H-function. In contrast to the Laplace transform of the FPT distribution which can be expressed elegantly and neatly, the exact solution for the FPT distribution requires an infinite series of Fox H-functions instead of a single Fox H-function. Numerical result reveals that the crossover between the two distinct scaling regimes is apparent only when the discrepancy between the two diffusion exponents becomes more pronounced.